Professor to Quit After Losing Fight With U. of Alaska

Submitted by Doug Lederman on October 26, 2009 - 3:00am

A marine conservationist who has battled with -- and, it appears, lost to -- the University of Alaska and National Sea Grant Program officials over his perceived advocacy and access to grant money says he will leave the university. Rick Steiner had accused[1] Sea Grant officials of pressuring Alaska administrators to strip federal funds from Steiner, citing work that they considered to be inappropriate advocacy for a federal extension agent, and blamed university officials for caving to the pressure. The university rejected Steiner's final appeal[2] this month, and Steiner said in an e-mail Sunday that with the faculty union there declining to pursue outside arbitration, "it is abundantly obvious I cannot do my work from this institution."